Health Funds and Industry News

This year's private health insurance premium increase will be the lowest in 18 years.

For consumers this is great news, but knowing where to look to find real savings isn't always straight forward. This article will examine the reasons behind the annual premium rise, explain why this year's is comparatively small, and show you why 2019 is the perfect year to invest in a private health insurance policy.

On February 19 it was announced that the two largest not-for-profit health funds in Australia, HBF and HCF, were in talks to complete a merger. This momentous agreement could change the country's health insurance landscape and fundamentally shift the market position of these two funds.

The Labour party has come out swinging at health insurance funds. They called yearly premium increases aggressive and claimed health funds made billions in profit every year. Firstly, Australian Prudential Regulation Authority statistics put total profits of all health funds at just over $1.2 billion. Secondly, premium increases aren't an aggressive move to increase profit - they're quite the opposite.

Basic cover is an essential part of the complex private health insurance market, and a product of high value to those who use it. Despite that fact, it has come under fire in the media recently with some industry commentators questioning it's value.

People between the ages of 20 and 29 are the least likely to hold a health insurance policy for both hospital and general treatment, Australian Prudential Regulation Authority data shows. Plus, over the September quarter, almost 9,000 Australians aged from 25 to 29 dropped their cover (the largest decrease of any age group).

There's a problem with Australia's private health insurance cover. In fact, only 55 per cent of the population have insurance covering general treatment, according to the latest Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) statistics.

The average Australian health insurance premium has increased by between 4.8 and 6.2 per cent every year since 2010, Department of Health data shows. While the vast majority of consumers still see great value in their health insurance, it's understandable that some are put off by these continuous price increases.

Over 13.5 million Australians have some form of private health insurance, Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) data shows. That's well over half the population, a coverage level far better than many other advanced nations like New Zealand, the UK and Ireland.

The private health insurance industry is committed to keeping premiums as low as the market permits. After all, doing so is in everyone's best interests - to guarantee the sustainability of the industry and ensure that insurance policies remain affordable for all Australians.

The World Health Organisation regularly ranks the equity, efficiency and quality of health systems around the world. In their most recent report, Australia ranked in the top 20 per cent again, above the United States, and even our neighbours across the Tasman.